The "difficulty" in holding the Seattle meeting was more than slight: it raised the specter and reality of the organized working class (unions) working together with the radical left.
So far as I can see, the only thing that will defeat empire is the combo described above. The ruling class is clearly preparing for war, the question is, how are they going to motivate the rank and file to fight? One thing about the "void" that Chuck Grimes describes is the growing realization that the only folks who get the fruits of empire are the rich. That has really been the overt plan for the last twenty years: the gains are privatized (by the rich) while the losses are socialized.
Who the hell wants to go fight for that? Not my son. Yours?
Joanna